Women Travel to BC
January 24, 2003 10:15 AM | General
January 24, 2003
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia may have snapped its four-game losing streak Wednesday against Marshall, but the Mountaineers did very little to convince Coach Mike Carey that his team is finally out the woods.
 |
||
| Kate Bulger needs 10 points to move into 18th place on the school's career scoring list. (All-Pro Photography/Dale Sparks) |
The Mountaineers (11-4, 0-4) trailed Marshall by as many as nine points in the first half, and after building a 13-point advantage in the second half they nearly squandered it.
Carey says his team lost its focus in the second half after getting the lead, “I don’t have an answer to it right now, but we better find the answer to it.”
Rebounding was a major problem for West Virginia. The more aggressive Thundering Herd grabbed a staggering 25 offensive rebounds Wednesday night -- this despite the fact that Marshall (5-10) has not played very well this year. In fact, the Herd lost by 10 to an Akron team that the Mountaineers beat by 51 points earlier this year.
According to Carey, the one bright spot for West Virginia was the play of junior guard Sherell Sowho, who broke out of her shooting slump in a big way by scoring 24 points – one shy of her season high. Fifteen of those points came in the second half.
“If there is anything positive about this game, it’s that she hopefully got her confidence back on the offensive side,” he said.
On the flip side, West Virginia’s leading scorer Kate Bulger was held to just 10 points. She failed to hit a three-point basket – one of just three times that has happened this season.
Bulger’s scoring average has dropped to 15.9 points per game, but she can move into 18th place on the school’s all-time scoring list with 10 points Saturday at BC. That total will pass Dionne Morris, who scored 1,070 career points.
West Virginia’s return to Big East play against No. 25-ranked Boston College Saturday will not be an easy chore.
West Virginia is winless in five previous games at BC and has not managed a win against the Eagles since joining the Big East for the 1995-96 season.
Last year Boston College swept both games against West Virginia, including a 68-56 decision in its last contest against the Mountaineers in Morgantown.
Five-eight guard Brianne Stepherson scored 17 points and backcourt mate Amber Jacobs added 16 for the Eagles in that victory. Both return to join an Eagle lineup that includes leading scorers Jessalyn Deveny (18.2 ppg.) and Becky Gottstein (13.5 ppg.).
Boston College (12-4, 4-1) rebounded from a surprising home loss to Syracuse last Saturday by winning at Georgetown Wednesday night. BC’s other three losses have come against South Carolina, Purdue and Tulane.
“If we don’t hit the boards it’s going to be a long night for us,” said Carey. “They’re a very good team.”
Tip off for the game 7 p.m. and MSNsportsNET.com’s Internet coverage begins at 6:50 p.m.
Notes: According to Phil Caskey, WVU assistant sports information director, Kate Bulger will be featured on the 10 p.m. edition of Fox Sports Pittsburgh Friday night.
